Chryed Busy
by Mushroom Hair
Summary: Not enough hours...
1. Chapter 1

The faint light spilling through the bathroom door filtered through Christian's closed eyelids and he grunted,sleepily opening one eye. He could hear the soft whirr from an electric toothbrush, the careful clink as it was turned off and replaced quietly onto the glass shelf.

Syed emerged into the dark and groped around for his clothes, shed with exhausted abandon the night before, cast aside when he crawled in late and dropped to sleep almost immediately. He had mumbled a word of love, hardly feeling Christian's good night kiss before oblivion encompassed him.

Christian watched him through narrowed lids while he pulled on his trousers. He felt the mattress dip slightly as Syed sat beside him, bending to put on his socks.

He saw the curve of Syed's spine in the orange glow from their alarm clock, and reached out to touch each vertebrae, one by one, down to the dip at the base.

Syed stilled, and felt the touch luxuriously, shivering at each trace of Christian's finger. He turned slowly and placed his hand over Christian's heart.

"I woke you," he apologised quietly.

Christian shook his head and adjusted the pillow, pushing himself up to see Syed's face more clearly.

"It doesn't matter. Do you have to go?" He stroked Syed's hair and studied his tired eyes thoughtfully.

"No, and yes. I don't have to, but I want to. But I want to stay here too. With you.. Does that make sense?"

Christian smiled and stifled a yawn.

"Kind of, in a Syed sort of way. I'm getting better at working you out. I need to clone you. One of you is obviously not enough."

Syed fished his shirt out from under the bed and gave it a shake, sniffing it suspiciously.

"I ironed you a clean one, it's hanging up in the wardrobe, with the other clothes."

Christian said pointedly and pretended to look disapproving.

"Thank you. I only wore this one yesterday evening, so it'll be fine! I'm late already, don't forget the tube and the two buses."

"I wish you could still go to your old Mosque.."

Syed winced and began to button up the crumpled shirt.

"You know why not."

A flash of guilt lit in Christian's eyes.

"It's my fault.."

Syed stopped, shocked, and leant to take Christian's face in his hands.

"No!" He said sharply, "my choice. You are, I chose you."

"And you don't regret it?"

Syed laughed.

"Ooh, maybe when you sing too loud, or roll in pissed. And when you're bossy, or nag…"

"I never nag!" Christian cut in huffily.

"My shirts hanging up with the other clothes?" Syed raised one eyebrow and Christian sniggered.

"I'll give you that one. Will you be back before my first appointment?"

Syed glanced at the time.

"I doubt it, you've got an early start too. Shall I meet you for lunch?"

Christian groaned and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand.

"I told Jane I'd meet her in that new Italian in the High Street. She wants to talk about Ian.. You could join us?"

"She might feel she can't talk so freely if I'm there, so best not."

"You're right. You're always right.."

Syed beamed and kissed Christian gently, murmuring;

"Yes I am and don't you forget it."

He stood up to leave and Christian grabbed onto the material of his sleeve,

"Tonight then.."

Syed looked surprised.

"I thought you were going for cocktails with Roxy?"

"Am I? Oh shit. I'll cancel. Tell her I've got a better offer."

"That would go down well. Bugger, because I thought you weren't in, I've arranged to meet Tamwar, do some late night shopping and get something to eat. He's struggling at home, they're trying to run his life."

"Hmm, I see it's his turn now. You must go."

Christian wriggled down under the duvet, trying to hide his disappointment.

Syed zipped up his jacket and made for the door, pausing by it, fiddling with the handle.

"And at least I get some news, my parents may not care about me, but I still care about them…"

Christian peered through the darkness of the morning, trying to read the expression in Syed's eyes where he stood in shadow, far away on the opposite side of the room.

"Oh my darling. If there was anything I could do, bang their heads together, do some shouting.."

"I doubt that would help.."

"I could try and fuck you straight.." Christian offered and Syed laughed delightedly.

"That could take a while."

"An eternity. I'm willing to give it my best shot though."

"You will fail, believe me."

Syed opened the door and stepped onto the landing, calling behind him.

"And we'll never find the time. Get up!"

"I am up!" Shouted Christian, adding to himself, as he listened to Syed's hurried footsteps on the stairs and the slam of the front door, "well a bit of me is…."


	2. Chapter 2

Christian couldn't work out why the key had grown. He squinted drunkenly at it in the dark and tried to cram it into the lock again, but it skidded sideways, scratching the paint.

"Arse.." He muttered, spinning the keys around, selecting a different one. It slid in, but wouldn't turn.

He was getting cold out on the street, the tight black T shirt that had seemed such an excellent fashion choice five hours ago, now giving him no protection from the icy wind that whipped down the street, sending an empty beer can rattling past him. He debated whether or not to ring the bell, smiling as he imagined Syed's sleepy voice as he buzzed him in, frowning at the entry phone, hair mussed, goose bumps rising on his naked skin.

'He will be cross,' he chided himself. His finger poised on the button, knowing from the blood running hot in his veins, that, in a purely selfish way, Syed cross would be rather delightful.

He leant against the wall to support himself and peered in bemusement at his key ring, wondering why it had a picture of Brad Pitt in a Perspex circle hanging from it. As he slumped, he heard a faint jangle in the pocket of his jeans.

"Jane's spare set.." It dawned on him and he hissed; "Twat."

With difficulty, he swapped them over, pulling his own set out. He dropped them twice into the dirty water that guttered from an overflowing drain hole, narrowly missing losing them into the drain forever.

He shouted 'Yay!' as the door swung open and immediately pressed his hand over his mouth, looking up nervously at the darkened window of the flat. Each stair seemed to let out a screeching creak as he put his foot down, despite his stumbling attempt at creeping.

Inside the flat he cannoned into the dining table, cursing under his breath as oranges bounced from the fruit bowl and bumped noisily onto the floor. His eyes darted towards the sleeping form in the bed. Undisturbed, Syed's peaceful breathing made the covers rise and fall.

Christian rubbed his thigh and whispered "Sy! I hurt my leg. Can you kiss it better?"

Syed sniffed and rolled over, pressing his face into the pillow.

Christian regarded him longingly. He had stayed in for hours that evening, watching Soap Opera's, cleaning the kitchen, waiting eagerly for Syed's return. He had managed to ignore Roxy's increasingly insulting texts, until finally she had made him crumble, against all his good intentions, by accusing him of being more boring than Charlie Slater and slightly less good looking.

He thought he would only go for one drink, but, inevitably, it had turned into many. Seeing Syed's peaceful, beautiful face, lost in a dream, made him ache with anger at himself.

He careered into the bathroom, bashing his elbow on the door handle.

'Serves me right.' He thought, trying to pee quietly, knowing that it sounded as loud as Niagara Falls.

He threw off his clothes and slipped under the covers beside Syed, spooning against him, wrapping his arms around his waist. Syed wriggled slightly and mumbled;

"Stinky beer breath."

"Cocktails, actually Sy. Incredibly expensive pink drinks with umbrellas in. Drinking Slow Comfortable Screws when I could have been having one, like the complete prat I am."

Christian kissed Syed's ear and pulled him closer, pushing up against him optimistically.

"We're like ships that pass in the night at the moment." He commented sadly.

"Sheep." Syed turned to face him, licked his chin and turned away, letting out a long sigh and snuggling under the duvet.

It seemed like only minutes until Christian woke, closing his eyes quickly against the stabbing shafts of pain that pulsed in his temples, sticking out his tongue to rid himself of the taste of stale alcohol. He reached out, but Syed's side of the bed was cold and empty.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey handsome! I'm in the café, can you meet me there? I'll buy you cake.."

Syed's voice sounded breathy and rushed on the other end of the phone.

"I can't, I'm on my way to the printers to pick up the new flyers."

Christian's face fell with disappointment.

"Oh. Maybe tonight then."

He positioned his mobile under his chin and mouthed 'tea please' at Jane. Finding a seat by the window he slumped down, propping his elbows heavily onto the table.

"Will I see you tonight?" he asked plaintively.

A passing police siren in the background drowned out Syed's response.

"Say again.." Christian pressed the phone closer to his ear, then, remembering his plans, joined in as Syed answered;

"Sam's birthday party."

"And I half promised I'd baby sit for Zahida." Syed added.

"I'll come with you."

Syed dodged around a cyclist on the pavement and pushed open the door to the shop.

"And risk the wrath of Sam? He won't speak to you for a year."

He smiled, relishing Christian's deep laugh.

"And how is that a bad thing? I haven't got him a present yet."

"Get him something ridiculously expensive with a designer label. Actually, on second thoughts, don't. Get him a knock off from Fat Elvis."

"You're breaking up. Get him some knockers from Fat Elves?"

"That'll do."

Syed smiled at the girl behind the counter and handed over his receipt.

Christian spilt a little salt from the glass shaker and began to pool it with his finger, writing Syed's name.

"I suppose we've got the weekend. Bollocks, except we haven't, you've got that course.."

Syed swapped his phone to the other ear and checked one of the flyers that the girl had handed to him.

"I could come home after, It's only in Swindon."

"The travelling will wear you out, and the trains are always rubbish on a Sunday, you'd have to leave about five hours early to get there on time."

"I'll cancel it then."

Christian gratefully took the mug of tea from Jane.

"But you've been looking forward to it, and it's all paid for. Oh Sy, this is rubbish. How did we get so busy?"

"We'll make time, I promise. It will be okay."

"Will it?"

Christian gloomily stirred his tea, taking a sip and grimacing.

"Trust me."

"I do. I've just put sodding salt in my tea by mistake. I'm having a crap day.."

"Poor baby. It might get a bit crapper, some of your clients cancelled this afternoon.."

Christian's face lit up.

"But that's brilliant, I can spend it with you!"

"Ah, but I called a few new ones on the waiting list. I left you their names on the dining table, after I'd retrieved all the oranges from the floor. What were they doing there? No, don't tell me, I expect you decided to do some late night juggling. Did you see it?"

"No."

"Is that because you had a hangover and were wearing sunglasses indoors?"

Christian could hear the fond laughter under the words.

"Might have been. I'll swing by and get it. You never know, I might catch a glimpse of my gorgeous boyfriend from afar."

"I'll blow you a kiss. I'd better go, I feel rude talking on the phone when someone's trying to serve me. Don't forget the list…"

The line went dead.


	4. Chapter 4

Christian looked at his watch and broke into a run. He had been stuffing down chocolate cake, pausing between mouthfuls to mumble a sympathetic 'oh' and 'mm' as he listened to his sister's woes, and now it lay heavy in his stomach.

He sprinted up the stairs to the flat, calling out Syed's name, knowing there was little hope of him being in.

'And even if he is, I've only got two minutes until the next client.' He mused sadly.

Sure enough, the room was empty and silent. Christian hastily grabbed the list from beside the bowl of neatly piled oranges, turned on his heel and raced back out into the square.

It had started to rain, a fine drizzle making the leaves of the laurel bushes gleam.

He could see someone lurking at the back of the gardens and noticed with dismay that they didn't seem to be properly dressed for a session of physical activity. He wasn't in the mood for starting someone off from scratch.

Dragging the now screwed up piece of paper from his pocket, he glanced at the first name and his mouth curved into a smile.

'Stop it.' He chided himself. 'It's unprofessional to laugh at your customer's name.'

He tried to stem the rising giggle and prayed that she wouldn't hear the laughter he was desperately trying to suppress.

'Grow up Christian.'

He gave a cheery wave and called out;

"Miss Mycock!"

The slight figure turned and emerged from behind the cover of greenery.

"Yes I do," said Syed "I really do…."

He melted into Christian's embrace and the two of them stood together, drenched in the rain. Both oblivious to the passers by who nudged each other and pointed at them, unaware of the traffic nosie, the sound of car tyres splashing through puddles, not hearing the harsh cries of the market traders.

When they eventually came up for air, Christian waved the list at Syed and laughed.

"Genius!"

"I needed your help really, I bet you could have come up with some corkers."

"Mine would have been far more crass. I would only have managed those old favourites, Ben Doon and Phil McCavity."

"There's more.." Syed pointed shyly to the list. "It isn't only your cock I miss, that's just a small part.."

Syed noticed Christian opening his mouth to protest and added quickly;

"...though obviously not, it being huge, oh you know what I mean.."

Christian chuckled proudly.

"I know what you mean." He began to read the other names aloud.

"Gray Tarse, Hugh Darling, S. Uperman …"

"I'd started to struggle a bit…" confessed Syed "Read the last one."

"Olive Yew."

"So much,so very, very much."

" Olive Yew too, Sy. More than anything. So we're free the rest of the afternoon?"

Syed smiled up into his eyes.

"Oh yes.."

"Well what the hell are we doing standing out here then? Come on Gray Tarse, I'm taking you home."

* * *

Christian waited for his heart to slow down, feeling each nerve ending fizzle with energy.

"I think you may have killed me."

Syed slumped panting beside him, nestling under his arm.

"Same here. What a way to go…"

Christian tried to untangle his feet from the rumple of sheets.

"Let's never have another week like this one Sy."

Syed kissed his throat.

"It's ended pretty well."

"I know. But I've missed talking to you about the day, cooking together, having a laugh. It's been miserable."

"Back to normal after this weekend, I promise. We'd better get up if we're going to Sam's party."

Christian turned to look at him in surprise.

"I thought you were baby sitting for Zahida?"

"I only half promised, I got the distinct impression she didn't want to go round the in laws, if she could get out of it, so she'll be grateful for the excuse. Anyway, she'd understand."

Christian pulled him a little closer.

"Sam might understand too."

Syed sniggered.

"No he won't. I'm quite looking forward to a night out with you. We can sicken everyone with our public displays of affection."

"Really? You have come a long way Syed Masood. More likely they'll be green with envy that I'm with the hottest man in the room. We can sneak off and snog on top of the coats"

"I should hope so."

Christian hit his forehead with his palm.

"Shit, I didn't get him a present!"

Syed grinned triumphantly and wriggled across Christian's body. He began to rummage around beside the bed.

"Ah ha!" he crowed, his voice muffled by the cast aside duvet.

Christian stroked Syed's bottom as it lay over his groin until his head re-emerged.

"While I was out this morning I sent flowers and champagne, and I bought this!"

He brandished a hat, the price tag bobbing around.

Christian took it from him and let out a low whistle.

"Good work. That's the gayest hat I've ever seen."

He put it on and Syed giggled, pushing himself back onto the bed.

"You think he'll like it then?"

Christian placed the hat on the shelf beside him and checked the price.

"He'll bloody love it. Let slip how much it cost and he'll love it even more."

Syed sat astride Christian, running his hands up through his chest hair.

"And as I'm away this weekend, I thought we should make the next one special. So we've got tickets for a show, a table booked at a restaurant and a room at a hotel in the West End."

Christian pushed Syed's hair back and studied his face intently, eye's glittering with delight.

"You're a star. Did you know that?"

Syed looked momentarily guilty.

"Our credit card's gone a bit limp now…"

"I haven't," Christian announced "and I can feel that you haven't either.."

Syed laughed with joy as Christian flipped him over onto his back.

"Looks like we're going to be fashionably late to the party..."

"We'll tell him we were busy…."


End file.
